Number One Fan
by Esteban T. Rodriguez
Summary: Funny how it always goes with love if you don't look, you find. Fox X OC, based on actual events. For you, my darling Kelly.
1. Chapter 1

Number One Fan

By Esteban T. Rodriguez

Prologue: A Brief History Of Time

_You really gotta to hand it to these Krozoa, _Fox McCloud thought to himself as he trudged to the large pillar-like structure. _Who else would have thought of using wind power in the place of an elevator system._ Granted the thought of just having wind propelling you to kingdom come was a bit unnerving, but it was efficient.

Fox flinched as a gust of wind hit him at a right angle to the direction he was traveling. Then, the rain began to pelt him, causing his fur to muss. Today was getting off to a rough start.

Rubbing his arms to generate heat through friction, Fox shivered as he approached a large mesa, with a crystal in the center. Looking up, he saw something he couldn't quite make out inside the crystal. He rubbed his eyes and looked again.

What he saw took him completely by surprise, for inside the crystal was a beautiful vixen, with bright blue fur, a cute upturned snout, and a tribal outfit that revealed far too much by Cornerian standards. A small smile graced her jowls as if she were sleeping and dreaming of pleasant things like sunshine or new aircars or looking pretty, or whatever it was that girls thought of.

Fox felt his mouth hang open like an idiot, but at this point in time, he didn't care."Wow..." He murmured to himself. "She's beautiful..."

And then, without warning, a spectral blue figure lanced out, orbiting the crystal. The ovular shape of what could be considered a head identified it as a Krozoa spirit, leaving Fox to ponder on just how to release the spirit inside himself he carried. Invasive as the procedure was.

But as he thought of this, his gaze wavered to the lovely vixen who the Krozoa who appeared to Fox identified as Krystal. (_Damn ironic name if you ask me,_ Fox thought.) Somehow, all the aches and pains of the last few days, the fears and feelings of hopelessness of the last few months, the harrowing experiences of interstellar war of the last few years, and the sorrow and hardship of Fox's whole existence seemed to evaporate, leaving him light as a cloud and feeling just fine. "What am I doing?..." He whispered, happily.

That answer came from an unfriendly realm called reality. in the Stern form of Peppy Hare. "_Peppy here, whaddarya doin', Fox? Release the spirit and get outta there. Peppy out."_

Fox had known Peppy a long time. Long enough to know that if that was the tone to be used, then he wasn't too impressed. "All right," Fox said. "I'm going."

And Fox left to test a theory he had to release the foreign Krozoa spirit inside him, but not before stealing one last loving gaze at Krystal.

Approximately four days later, Fox found himself back at the same place. The only differences were that the rain was harsher, his Arwing stood by, the tyrannical General Scales had been defeated by some netherworldy figure and there were now six Krozoa spirits orbiting Krystal's transparent prison. But, unlike what the giant Krozoa had promised him, nothing happened to release Krystal.

"What's going on?" Fox demanded. "You said this would save her!"

If anyone was listening to the vulpine's protest, they completely ignored it and proceeded with infusing Krystal with the Krozoa spirits available. Fox's adrenaline skyrocketed; he knew all too well the stretch of the spirit's release, the extra weight that it added to the mind and how one could go mad if they had two minds in their head at once, let alone seven. Fox shouted "No!!!!" and rushed up the mesa to act.

But it was too late. All six spirits had been absorbed by Krystal, whose eyes (A fantastic shade of turquoise, Fox noted.) shot open and released all spirits at once, into a large Krozoa statue head that faced her, yet looked on as statues tend to do.

Fox winced, imagining the pain involved with such a venture, but implored the girl to wake up.

She opened her eyes, groggily, and then looked down; just as the crystal prison she was held in shattered, allowing gravity to have its merciless plunge, all seventy stories of the Krozoa Palace to the subbasement.

Like a coiled spring, Fox leaped out with the magic staff he held and jutted it out for her to catch. Krystal did indeed catch it, and hauled herself up onto the ledge. It was then that their eyes met for the first time, and Fox's innards turned to jelly. He found his hands holding the staff sweat, his legs buckle and he felt a swell in his heart.

The only thing that remained unaffected was his mind, that screamed at him to get a grip, for the statue that had been injected with Krozoa spirits had begun to move under its' own power.

"_I am reborn!"_ A deep, menacing voice shouted. The same voice that had overruled General Scales, that Fox recognized from somewhere. "_The mighty Krozoa God! Kneel all those that stand before me!!" _The voice dissolved into maniacal laughter.

"We will never kneel to you!" Krystal shouted back. How she got to be by Fox's side was a mystery to him, but there she was. Snatching the staff he had. "Give me that!" She demanded.

"Hey, wait!" Fox said, taken by surprise. That, and the staff and he had been through a lot together. He'd grown rather fond of it. "Well, thanks for nothing." Fox crossed his arms. "If it weren't for me, you wouldn't be standing here at all."

Krystal seemed not to hear, but whispered to her staff, as if greeting it like an old friend. She then pointed it skywards, bursts of concentrated fire magic streaking to the retreating, spacebound Krozoa head.

Looking on, Fox thought no, could have sworn he saw something on the underside of the damn thing. Something he remembered all too well, as if something from a nightmare. He hurried to his Arwing and took off after it.

Dodging the debris field that had been created with the Planet Sauria's separation, Fox confronted the head, only to have it turn about to reveal a face and pair of hands he recognized.

"I've been looking forward to this day, to see you again. Fox McCloud!"

"Andross!" Fox gasped, not believing what he saw. This couldn't happen. The ape couldn't be here, now...

When Andross' mad ramblings about the destruction of the Lylat System came to a close, Fox snapped out of his trance and fought the disembodied head one last time...

Krystal, Fox decided two days later, had a funny way of thanking someone for saving her life; follow them through their ventures and attempt to repay the debt. Krystal had gone through several simulations for combat-testing already, perhaps in an attempt to still say thank you.

Fox, however didn't mind. It didn't matter how weak-legged, how clumsy with his speech he became when he was in her company, or how his innards turned to jelly whenever she so much as cast a lovely glance at him.

Fox had felt this only once before, but that was a long time ago. It had been lonely, admitted, but whenever he looked into those lovely blue orbs, he felt himself at home, as if a weight had been lifted from his heart.

There was just no mistaking it. Fox was in love with Krystal.

And for now, everything was just right in the world. Well, if you didn't count all the Aparoids that remained between their homeworld and Corneria.

End of chapter

Please tell me what you think. Ciao!


	2. Chapter 1: Out of the Frying Pan

Chapter 2

Out of the frying pan, into the fire

Fox McCloud nursed the stiff drink he held gingerly. He always knew himself to be a cheap drunk, and he didn't want to stagger back home that night. Besides, he used to drink the hard stuff like this before the events of late, back when he was trying to impress every little vixen wearing a skirt. No, he wouldn't drink himself under the table, despite the good spirits he was in, with the Aparoid threat neutralized. Now, he finally had time to relax, take some time for himself.

Spend some time with Krystal.

Just thinking her name brought a smile to Fox's face. Not a day went by when she crossed his mind, no battle where he glanced to his port side wing to make sure that Arwing was all right. She was always the one he streaked to help first, if some cocky enemy thought she'd make a prime target. Hell, she'd even secured a picture by his bed, next to his service pistol and the holo of his dad.

It was quite a feeling he felt, this attraction he had for Krystal. She'd barged through the armor he'd erected over his heart, as if she'd been manning a Landmaster and had evidently decided to stay. There was always something about the way her eyes gleamed when she gave him one of those coy, sultry, over-the-shoulder smiles that made his stomach flutter.

_Ah, hell._ Fox thought. _Only one shot at life. _He raised his glass and muttered "To Krystal..." and downed it.

Given his relative inexperience with alcohol, (_Probably cause I'm such a damn prude,_ Fox thought self-depreciatingly.) his throat burned and he just about coughed the whole damn glass back up. How bad would that have looked, the valiant Fox McCloud who defeated Andross, Andrew Oikonny, General Scales and the Aparoids, can't even hold his liquor? Never mind how bad it would look, how bad it would feel! It burned bad enough the first time down.

Fox sucked in a careful breath and walked out of the bar. He'd reached his limit and he would now walk back home. Besides, it was a beautiful night outside. And where he was going, you'd get a great view of the river.

Fox threw on his windbreaker and started walking. He was halfway home when he saw a face he never thought to see again in a while.

His fur was a bit cleaner, but longer than Fox remembered, especially around his jowls. He looked strange without his standard Cornerian flightsuit, but then Fox probably looked the same without his headset. A smile crossed the old dog's face as he recognized Fox as well.

"Bill Gray!" He shouted, grinning broadly.

"Foxie!" Bill extended his hand and grasped Fox's warmly, firmly, as a man does. But the reunion didn't stop there. For with Bill was a face Fox hadn't seen in a much longer time that the Battle of Katina.

The lady beside him was a Fichinan Tigress, very white with black stripes that seemed to suit her very well. (Some how that always seemed to go with tigresses...) Her forget-me-not blue eyes glittered with the reflection of a nearby light standard, framed behind her slightly curved glasses. She wore very plain clothes, if not a bit overzealous with the black. She wore her long black hair in a ponytail, which seemed to make her "lucky round face" as the Saurians would have labeled it, more prominent. Despite the bangs she had that, in Fox's opinion, would have looked much better if she wore her hair down.

Fox thought Bill was lucky to have such a pretty girl on his arm. For a brief moment, he thought of maybe trying to whisk her away for a drink to get to know her. But he already knew her, from years back. They hadn't even talked since Fox had left for the Cornerian Flight Academy. But here she was. Fox's old classmate, Kala Nag. Fox was impressed with his long term memory, remembering that she changed her name back to her mother's maiden name rather that the Wallace that had been imposed upon her since her parents' marriage.

"Fox!" She beamed, evidently remembering him as well. "God, it's been... years!"

"Good to see you again, Kala." Fox said, wrapping his arms around her in a friendly hug that turned into a big squeeze. "How've you been?"

"I've been okay," Kala smiled. "But you, you've gone and become a hero!"

"Ahh, wasn't much." Fox said. "What's a few dogfights over Venom and Fortuna, anyway?"

"You two know each other?" Bill asked, an eyebrow cocked.

"We knew each other in school," Kala explained. "How many years now?"

"To many to count." Fox shook his head. He'd never been good with number, whether it be years, math equations or keeping track of his kills in the cockpit. Those types of things he left to computers. "We all should get together for a drink, or lunch or something. To catch up on old times."

"Sure." Bill said. "Day after tomorrow, Michaels?"

_Damn._ Fox thought. That was where he was going to take Krystal for lunch on that same day. All he had to do was ask her. But these were old friends he was talking about, people who he missed and deserved his time, not just a rude brush off the shoulder. Even if it was for Krystal.

"I'll see." Fox said. "I'll have to check my calender."

Bill nodded and Fox received both of their respective contact numbers, which he promised to call should he not be able to make it with Krystal.

Then, as they went their separate ways, Kala called back "It's wonderful to see you again, Fox."

"Great to see you too." Fox replied, and stood there only for a moment looking at their retreating backs. He smiled, happy for his two good friends that had begun a relationship. They were a good match, Bill and Kala.

Now, if only he could have that same thing with Krystal.

---

Fox slept well that night, waking up on his own time. None of this soul-eroding call to battle stations at the wee hours of the night he had been accustomed to. His day started off just right with a glance at the photo of Krystal he had beside his bed.

Little did he know, that this day would shake him to his very foundations. It wasn't anything he could blame on supply issues, or even his friends.

It was something that hurt him deeply, that burned deeper than any blaster shot. Something for which there is no adequate defense for.

An attack on the heart.

Fox jauntily almost skipped down the stairs after some careful deliberation, rehearsal and pacing in his room. He finally worked out what he was going to say to Krystal, just the right words that would make her say "Yes" to him.

And then, at 10:34 in the morning, his life and attitude changed.

He walked into the lounge of the apartment complex that housed him and the rest of the team, where he began to say what he meant to.

He got as far as "Krystal---" when he saw something terrible.

Krystal was there, seated at a table, with a handsome Doberman with a spiked collar and a build that looked like he could have even taken Wolf O'Donnell to the cleaners. And they sat, in close proximity. Too close for Fox's comfort, as she had her arms around his neck, he lips pressed against his in a soft, tender embrace.

Fox's knees buckled. His tongue felt fat in his mouth. His stomach fell into the soles of his boots. And his heart stretched to the breaking point, before developing a slight tear, which caused a chain reaction that left it in two fractured halves.

"Oh, hello Fox." Krystal said, looking up, a smile splayed across her face. That tender, beautiful smile that Fox came to love. _Dammit, how could she be so happy while I'm here in agony?!_

"This is Murray." She indicated to the monster of a Doberman beside her, who merely grunted. In a fit of extreme jealousy, Fox thought that was the extent of his vocabulary. What was so great about him? _What's wrong with me!_

"You all right Fox?" She asked, cocking her head to one side, either cruelly taunting his pain, or actually in the dark. Either one would have hurt just as much. Fox wanted to scream at her about how he felt, wanted to wring this Murray fellow's neck and make Krystal his own. But all that came out was "Yeah, I- I guess."

"You looked like you were going to say something," Krystal said, curiously.

"N-No." Fox stammered. "I have to go."

It was an awkward end to that butchered conversation, but Fox had to get out of there. He didn't remember allowing his legs to move, but he was traveling, barely seeing anything as he went by.

But he did hear what was said about him.

"What a twerp."

"Yeah," was Krystal's reply. "He's good in his cockpit, but that's about it."

Fox felt tears stinging his eyes. Tears of hurt, frustration and anger. He leaped back up to the sanctuary of his room, and locked the door. He went the whole day without eating, sleeping or even talking to anyone else. He heard the comm beep for him several times, but let the answering program take care of it. He didn't want to talk. He didn't want to see anyone.

It was damn ironic that he always had to have this bad luck dumped on him. It was as he heard from someone a long time ago, when he broke a jar of jam on the kitchen floor. He was four.

_Everything can be fixed except a broken heart. That takes time._

Those words brought little comfort, and a fresh bout of pain he thought he'd conquered. _wish you were here, Dad._ He thought. _I miss you, so much..._

But Fox knew that all he had was himself. No warm vixen to snuggle with and love at night, as he dreamed of. No father to guide him through the trails that would befit an adolescence he never had.

All he had were his tears and his jealous fantasies to gnaw on. And the self depreciating thoughts of what was wrong with him. And the broken memories of Krystal, the way he remembered her, to comfort and torment him through his dreamless, restless sleep.

End of chapter


End file.
